BLOODLINES
Energetic, dynamic, passionate, aggressive and intricate; Bloodlines are a band really pushing the boundaries in the Scottish scene. The band cite fellow Scottish bands Our Future Glory, Verse Metrics, Mt. Doubt, Vasa, Kathryn Joseph and Crow’s Feet as their favourites and are delighted to be included in this year’s T Break line-up commenting: “We have always wanted to play on the T-Break stage since we teenagers first writing songs in our garage and we feel we have worked harder than ever this year and have pushed ourselves in every way possible so it feels amazing to be on the T in the Park line up.
They continued: “Live shows are a huge drive for our band, getting together, making something new then getting to play it live is what we love doing. Expect lots of sweat and loud noises.”
DECLAN WELSH
Declan Welsh creates a unique sound with smart stories told to indie punk music. Talking about the current Scottish music scene, Declan said: “It feels a bit of a special time just now. You look around you and there’s some really important bands, and so many with infinite potential. There’s a camaraderie among us as well. Everyone is genuinely pleased to see others do well. It’s a total pleasure to be a part of.”
Talking about hearing the T Break news, Declan said: “It’s just a total dream. It’s the biggest festival in Scotland. I’ve seen Pulp play the Main Stage. It’s surreal, man. Everyone knows about it. My facebook went nuts, it was like I’d passed my driving test and got engaged at the same time. I think that shows how excited people are for you, because it really is a massive deal.”
And what can fans expect from Declan’s performance? “Without sounding arrogant, I know what we’re doing is different; that we manage to strike a chord with crowds without talking down to them. I’m gonna have the T Break crowd shouting about antifascism in Spanish; then dancing while I tell them about how “every c*nt’s a good c*nt”. It’s a shared experience, a gig. Especially at somewhere like T in the Park. We’re not gonna be playing at you, we want you to get involved. The set is also punctuated by spoken word, which will be a new experience for some folk. You’ll dance, you’ll laugh, you’ll get to shout “Fuck Cameron and Osborne”. What’s not to like?”
DOMICILES
Domiciles are, simply put, a psychedelic wall of sound. With a real buzz for psychedelic, garage and alternative sounds in Scotland right now, Domiciles are fitting into a market made big by the likes of Neon Waltz and Baby Strange in recent months. Talking about their fortchoming appearance on the T Break stage the band said: “Playing the T Break stage has long been a goal of ours, having witnessed so many great bands before us start their careers there. It’s a great platform that champions underground music, and it goes without saying that we’re ecstatic to have been chosen, and we’re really happy to be able to cross this one of the list.
Going on to talk about their sound, the band said: “As a band, much of our sound is the result of extreme experimentation; we often implement weird, unorthodox methods to generate sound. The songs themselves started off as a recording project for Nick & Rory, bonding over a mutual appreciation for the music birthed from the acid explosion of the 1960’s, particularly the ‘Nuggets’ complications. Since then, the music has grew arms and legs; it’s gotten louder, noisier, fuzzier, rawer, generally more experimental. but the bare roots are still there.
And what can fans expect from their set at T? “Volume, noise and energy.” Bring earplugs, they say.
EDWIN ORGAN
Describing the current Scottish scene, Edwin Organ went a bit left field, saying: “The scene’s diverse and fruitful like mother nature in parts, but also terribly barren and sometimes pretty freaky. I saw a seagull eating another seagull the other day, whilst a bag of chips lay discarded a metre away. That stayed with me. I guess what I’m trying to say is you should take in as much music as possible, whatever it is, before your fellow musicians are eating your innards off the pavement.”
Talking about his inspiration, Edwin said: “My inspiration mainly comes from being really inattentive at my day job and ‘going to the toilet’ to write down ideas that I have on my phone before my colleagues start raising concerns amongst themselves that I may have a serious bowel condition. It is really very sweet of them, I appreciate their concern.”
And what can we expect at T? “Three sweet friends, playing sweet jams.”
FOREIGNFOX
“Turbulent, dark yet defiantly uplifting,” FOREIGNFOX are another band who count themselves as avid T in the Park fans: “We’ve all been coming to T in the Park for years now as punters and we still can’t get our heads round actually being a part of it. It’s pretty surreal. It feels like just before the first time you go to T as a kid, proper buzzing!
“We look forward to a great big wall of sound, a mixture of old and new as well songs as plenty of over excited ‘T in the Park’ shouts on the mic! We tend to give everything we have on stage so it can be quite intense. Best thing to do is come see us and find out!”
FOREVER
FOREVER dub themselves “post-post-internet anxious catharsis” and if that still leaves little to the imagination the band say at T they’ll “try to be daring- vulnerable but also confrontational- and probably wilfully disjointed.” Talking about the current Scottish music scene, they said: “It’s good that there isn’t a predominant trend or scene; it would be nice to hear a deeper emotionality/melancholy that resonates though- Le Thug are great at that.”
They add: “We’re very grateful, we know that what we do is not to everyone’s taste.”
INDIGO VELVET
“We’re one of your five a-day,” proclaims Edinburgh’s Indigo Velvet, who in our opinion, have been a massively hard-working band to get to the stage they are today so it’s really great to see them on the T Break line-up. The band said: “It is really special for us lads! We have been a band for nearly three years now and T in the Park has been nothing but a dream. To be part of the T line up rather than just attending the festival like we have all done for the past five years, is a massive achievement! We now cannot wait to put on a show for the T Break audience!”
Talking about their forthcoming performance at T the band commented: “In terms of our live set, its very much a selling point for our band as it contains a lot of dancing, singing along and sheer joy. We have had this gig in mind for a good while now and how we would approach it if we were given the go ahead, so its now about taking our strong live set and building on it to make it one to remember!”
MIRACLE GLASS COMPANY
Back into the big beat is Miracle Glass Company’s mantra who say they’ve taken the T Break news as a hugely special moment saying: “It’s really magic, we are so proud and we absolutely can’t wait.”
Taking their inspiration from 1970’s rock, the band say they’re not sure what fans can expect from their set this weekend but they “hope it blows their minds!”
MT DOUBT
Describing the band’s music as “sad songs with catchy choruses”, MT. Doubt have had a quick rise to popularity in the last 12 months joining the live circuit in Scotland deemed “really, really strong” by the band themselves. Frontman Leo continued: “Scotland’s never had a problem producing great bands (Orange Juice, Teenage Fanclub, Jesus & Mary Chain etc.) and while that’s testament to the boundless creativity of our country, it also says a lot about the attitudes of Scottish audiences who are regularly described as being the ‘best in the world’.
Talking about their place on the T Break bill Leo commented: “It’s a wee bit surreal to be honest. I first went to T in 2007 when I was 13 and I’ve been back every year since, so 2016 will actually mark my 10th consecutive year of going which is a nice coincidence! When I was there for the first time I really clearly remember thinking to myself “I’m going to do this one day” and it’s pretty humbling to realise that dream. No matter how small our name is on the poster, the fact we’re on a bill with LCD Soundsystem, John Grant and Red Hot Chilli Peppers is madness.”
An Aesthetic, sentimental expression of juvenility, Redolent say their inspirations come from “Hippolyte Blanc, Aspartame, the astro at Broughton High, getting battered outside Waitrose in Stockbridge, bananas and toffee…..things like that.”
Speaking highly of fellow Scottish bands Man of Moon and Pronto Mama adding: “We’ve spent the last few years focused on writing so probably could have gigged more but we’re hoping the T-Break slot and the other shows we have lined up for summer will give us more of a taste.”
Talking about their space on the line-up, they said: “We feel like we’re ready for it. We’re excited to show off the music we’ve spent years working on.”
SCHOLESY
SCHOLESY will play his first ever gig at T in the Park which is quite a feat for any band. Describing his sound as raw, unique, thoughtful, diverse and unexpected, he commented: “I don’t really follow the Scottish music scene that closely being a big fan of hip hop and rap the two dont really cross over.”
He added: “It’s an amazing opportunity to showcase my music to a wider audience. Two years ago I went along for the full weekend and since then its been a long term goal of mine to play there.”
SCHOLESY takes his inspiration from a lot of hip hop music commenting: It’s my most favoured genre and I try to combine this with musical techniques I have picked up from singing and playing guitar that result in a more melodic sound. But at the heart of it I try to make songs that I would like to listen to.”
He continued: “Hopefully my performance will provide something a little different to what is expected of a newcomer on the T break stage. I’ll have interesting visuals, combined with a new sound that I dont think has been heard before.”
SCOPE
Energetic, smooth, lively, urban and fresh, SCOPE’s another left field choice by this year’s T Break panel that really shows the diversity of the line-up. Talking about the Scottish music scene he said: “I think the music scene is very healthy at the moment, as a hip-hop artist in Scotland I think its more vibrant than ever. I’m hopeful with all of the activity going on in Scotland it can allow focus on growing the buzz up north instead of always looking to London for growth.”
He continued: “I’m delighted to be apart of the T break 16 as it’s been an ambition of mine to play T in the park. I attended T in the park in 2013 with a close friend of mine and told myself I would play the stage! I’m experiencing the power of speaking dreams into reality.”
SWEATY PALMS
Describing their sound as “music to commit atrocities to,” Sweaty Palms are already pretty established in the local scene, packing out gigs with ease. They’ve described the current scene as “flies swarming around a rotten pig carcass,” and describe the monotone, they’re pretty “ecstatic” about being chosen as one of the 16 acts on this year’s T Break line-up. Fans have been told to expect blood from their set this coming weekend. You’ve been warned.
THE NINTH WAVE
Noisy, darkwave with a slice of pop is the soundscape of The Ninth Wave who proclaim: “Scotland’s a really good place to be at the moment. We’re quite new to it, but so far we’ve just found that it’s like a big community – everyone knows everyone and goes to each other’s gigs. There’s so many talented people going around as well and there’s some really interesting sounds being produced in the city.”
“Playing T Break is really exciting for us because it’s our festival debut, so we really can’t wait to get up there and play. A load of our friend’s bands are playing too, so it’s looking like it’ll be a mad weekend.”
THE VEGAN LEATHER
Fervent, zingy, zealous, dance, disco, The Vegan Leather are no stranger to readers of TTV since we premiered one of the Scotland acts’ first releases. The band said: ‘In our opinion, Scotland can be seen as the epicentre of culture and music. Starting in the 70’s with Postcard Records, Scotland saw the conception of the likes of Orange Juice and Aztec Camera, through to the 80’s with The Jesus & Mary Chain and then through the decades saw Belle & Sebastian, Franz Ferdinand and Arab Strap for example.
“We get our inspiration from studying classic pop music and our day to day situations. We have always written about quite personal issues, it feels natural and easy to convey things like that.5 Expect us at our slickest and most colourful. Over the past few months we have been refining ourselves and our songs, as well writing new material.”
The band continued: “It feels absolutely incredible to be part of the T Break 16. It is an excellent feeling to be in the company such a wonderful line up of musicians. We can’t wait to play one of the most esteemed festivals in the UK, and can’t wait to show what we’ve been working on.”
TONGUES
Energetic with catchy dark electro beats, Tongues spoke about the close-knit community within the Scottish music scene: “Musicians generally care about sharing ideas with one another and there is a genuine enthusiasm and excitement when a band from Scotland is doing well in the wider world.
“Having played the festival last year and had the opportunity to experience the atmosphere in the T Break tent, we can wait to get on the T stage. It’s a big space for a big sound and we plan to make the most of it.”
Speaking about the band’s style they said: “We aim to create music that is popular, catchy and engaging, but not safe. We try to experiment and twist familiar sounds to create new hooks and perform them in a really engaging dynamic way.
“Our music has been described as ‘‘hook laden’, ‘gorgeously grungy’, ‘festival ready electro’. We want to create as big a sound as we can, fill the tent with people and noise. We want to have T Break buzzing from the moment we play our first song until our very last.”
